Choice Before Our Country

A general House debate titled ‘Choice Before Our Country.’ Representative Mann argued the country faces a choice between trusting the American people and trusting big government, saying Republicans favor lower taxes, secure borders, free markets, and citizen-only voting, while describing Democrats as favoring more spending, higher taxes, and open borders. Part of the time was also spent recognizing a departing staff member from Mann’s Kansas office.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text (opens in a new tab)

2 statements

Tracey Mann, KS

Republican

Linked statement

“Americans have a choice between trusting the people or trusting a bigger government. Republicans want lower taxes, a secure border, free markets, and voting only by citizens. Democrats want more government spending, higher taxes, open borders, and socialist policies that take away personal freedom.”
  • Speech in the House

    Signal 38 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

    See full analysis
Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, there is a fundamental choice before our country today: Do we trust the American people, or do we trust Big Government? Conservatives believe that freedom grows when the American Government gets out of the way. We believe in rewarding hard work, protecting free speech, securing our borders, lowering taxes, giving parents autonomy, and creating an economy where Americans can build, grow, and prosper. The Democratic Party is moving in the opposite direction. Socialism was once dismissed as a fringe movement in American politics. Today, its ideas are increasingly becoming the agenda of the Democratic Party: bigger government, higher taxes, more spending, and more control over the daily lives of Americans. Their own DSA movement openly calls for extending voting rights to noncitizens. Meanwhile, Democrats in Congress continue to oppose commonsense election safeguards, like the SAVE America Act, even though more than 80 percent of Americans support requiring identification to vote. That tells you everything you need to know about the competing visions before us. Republicans believe that American elections should be decided by American citizens. We believe taxpayers’ dollars should serve hardworking American families and not pay for gender transition surgeries for people who entered our country illegally. We believe that Americans should keep more of what they earn. We believe a sovereign country must have a secure border. President Biden and congressional Democrats gave us 4 years of chaos at our southern border. President Trump and House Republicans proved that chaos was a policy choice. We enforced the law, secured the border, and restored common sense. There is an inverse relationship between the size of government and the freedom of its people. Democrats want to grow government and shrink freedom. Congressional Republicans want to shrink the reach of government and grow individual freedom. That is the choice before this country: government control or individual liberty, dependence or opportunity, socialism or free markets, crazy or common sense. I know which side I am on.

Tracey Mann, KS

Republican
“I am thanking Tel Wittmer for working on my staff for three and a half years. He served the people of Kansas well in Washington and back home, and we will miss him.”
  • Speech in the House

    Signal 35 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

    See full analysis
Official Congressional Record

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a dedicated public servant, a trusted member of my team, and a good friend, Tel Wittmer, as he concludes 3\1/2\ years of service to the people of the Big First District. Tel is a Kansan through and through. He grew up in Holton, graduated from K-State, and, like me, had the privilege of serving as student body president at K-State. From the beginning, I knew that Tel understood that leadership is ultimately about service. Tel first joined my office in Washington, where he quickly became someone who I trusted with some of the most difficult issues before the Congress. He brought tremendous thoughtfulness to his work as a legislative assistant, but he also brought personality and joy to the office. My Washington, D.C., staff was incredibly sad to see him leave the Capitol when he and his wife, Madelyn, moved home to Kansas last February. Fortunately for us, Tel was not leaving the team. He moved to Wamego and took on the responsibility of serving as my district director. Over the last 1\1/2\ years, Kansans across the Big First have gotten to know the same Tel who we knew in Washington. His thoughtfulness is apparent to everyone he meets. He listens carefully, treats people with respect, and approaches every conversation with a sincere desire to help. He has represented me and his office extremely well, and now my district staff feels the same way that my D.C. staff did when he left Washington. They are going to miss him tremendously, just as I will. However, the things I admire most about Tel go way beyond his work. He is a man of strong faith, a leader in his community, a devoted husband to Madelyn, and now a great father to their young daughter, Eve. I thank Tel for the 3\1/2\ years that he has given the people of Kansas. I thank him for his friendship, his counsel, his leadership, and the care he has shown to every Kansan who walked through the door. While we will miss having Tel on our team, I am grateful that he will continue serving our great State in a new capacity. I know that God has great things ahead for Tel, Madelyn, and Eve, and I look forward to watching the next chapter unfold. May God bless Tel, and I thank him for his service to the Big First.

Discussion

No comments yet

See the full discussion

Comment rules

More from issue 139

  1. House of Representatives Saluting White Plains Beautification Foundation 2 statements
  2. House of Representatives Celebrating Rural Lawyer Julie Bear 4 statements
  3. House of Representatives Operation Midway Blitz Anniversary 2 statements
  4. House of Representatives Catherine Watts Celebrates 100th Birthday 4 statements
  5. House of Representatives Recognizing the Delaware Community Foundation 2 statements
  6. House of Representatives Recognizing Shannon Bingham 2 statements
  7. House of Representatives Honoring Diana Flores 4 statements
  8. House of Representatives Choice Before Our Country 2 statements
  9. House of Representatives Expanding Scotus 3 statements
  10. House of Representatives Honoring Bill Doba 3 statements
  11. House of Representatives Mail Ballot Whistleblower 2 statements
  12. House of Representatives Honoring Work of Warrior Healing Center 3 statements
  13. House of Representatives Olowalu Fire Station 2 statements
  14. House of Representatives Honoring Grand Master Navigator Sesario Sewralur 2 statements
  15. House of Representatives Recognizing Carolyn Brown 4 statements
  16. House of Representatives Congratulating Michael Hunn on His Retirement 4 statements
  17. House of Representatives Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of the United States to Require That the Supreme Court of the United States Be Composed of Nine Justices 29 statements
  18. House of Representatives Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025 23 statements
  19. House of Representatives Presenting Congressional Baseball Game Trophy 2 statements
  20. House of Representatives Honoring Dolly Parton 3 statements
  21. House of Representatives Saluting Little League Softball World Series 9 statements
  22. House of Representatives Giving Voice to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Principles 17 statements
  23. House of Representatives Rebuilding Usaid 10 statements